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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: land · season · court · stick · ball · calf · ground · rash

  1. When are we going to ________________?
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. ground — a position
  3. court — of a king
  4. court — of law
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. land — a country
  7. ball — a great time
  8. court — for sport
  9. rash — hasty
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. ground — the earth
  17. season — of the year
  18. land — ground
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. season — in sport
  21. rash — a series
  22. ball — a dance
  23. ground — crushed
  24. stick — a piece of wood

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com